William Ernest Harwell

Hall of Fame Sports Broadcaster. Legendary voice of the Detroit Tigers, from 1960 to 1991, and 1993 to 2002. Born William Ernest Harwell, he was raised in Atlanta and attended Emory University, before beginning his broadcasting career as a sports commentator at WSB Radio in Atlanta during 1940. Following service in the United States Marine Corps during World War II, he began announcing Major League games with the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1948 to 1949. Among his other broadcasting assignments were with the New York Giants (1950 to 1953) and Baltimore Orioles (1954 to 1959). During his tenure with Detroit, he called their 1968 and 1984 World Series titles, and was known for his signature "loooong gone" home run calls. Harwell was a recipient of the Ford C. Frick Award from the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1981, and was inducted into the Radio Hall of Fame in 1998. He died from bile duct cancer.